Blythe Hae I Been on Yon Hill
written in 1793
Blythe Hae I Been on Yon Hill - meaning Summary
Unrequited Love's Desolation
Robert Burns's short lyric traces a sudden emotional shift: the speaker begins in carefree, pastoral mood but becomes consumed by anguish when his love for Lesley goes unanswered. The poem contrasts the lightness of earlier scenes with a tightening inner silence, sighing, and despair. It presents unrequited desire as corrosive, turning everyday pleasure into hopeless longing and even contemplating death as an escape if the beloved remains cold. Overall, the poem sketches the collapse from rural gaiety into private suffering caused by unreturned affection.
Read Complete AnalysesBlythe hae I been on yon hill, As the lambs before me; Careless ilka thought and free, As the breeze flew o'er me: Now nae langer sport and play, Mirth or sang can please me; Lesley is sae fair and coy, Care and anguish seize me. Heavy, heavy is the task, Hopeless love declaring: Trembling, I dow nocht but glowr, Sighing, dumb, despairing! If she winna ease the thraws, In my bosom swelling; Underneath the grass-green sod Soon maun be my dwelling.
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